Transforming Insurance at Scale: What YuLife’s Partnership with Dai-ichi Life Reveals About the Future

Six months into its launch in Japan, YuLife’s partnership with Dai-ichi Life is proving to be more than a successful market entry—it’s a case study in what happens when two companies align not just on strategy, but on purpose.

In the latest episode of the Life at Scale podcast, hosted by Michael Waitze, YuLife COO Sam Fromson and Stephen Barnham, Global Chief Digital and Information Officer at Dai-ichi Life Holdings, reflect on a journey that has already begun reshaping how one of Japan’s oldest insurers thinks about innovation, engagement, and trust.

More than tech: building trust, not just tools

When the collaboration kicked off, expectations were modest. Stephen anticipated a slick wellbeing app—a nice-to-have that could tick a few innovation boxes. What he found instead was a business built around deep human purpose.

“You can have great tech,” he says, “but if you don’t gel with the founders, it won’t work. Over time, I’ve come to trust these people deeply—and that’s made all the difference.”

That trust flowed both ways. Dai-ichi Life opened its doors, giving YuLife access to real customers, internal know-how, and a shared canvas for co-creation. In return, YuLife offered more than just a digital product. It brought a vision for insurance as something proactive, personal, and built into everyday life.

Start with steps, scale to strategy

Sam describes YuLife’s go-to-market approach as an “iceberg”: simple on the surface, but deep beneath. That surface layer—a gamified app that rewards movement, mindfulness, and healthy habits—is just the beginning.

Beneath it lies a full reimagining and transformation of how insurance can be designed, delivered, and experienced: from underwriting and customer journeys to behavioural engagement and data-driven value.

It’s an approach that’s resonated in Japan, a market known for its blend of technological sophistication and cultural nuance. Initial rollout saw strong internal uptake at Dai-ichi Life and growing momentum from customers. But the bigger impact was philosophical.

“YuLife didn’t just show us how to sell differently—they helped us think differently,” Stephen says.

Cultural fluency, not just localisation

True global partnerships aren’t built on translation alone. They require cultural understanding—something YuLife has leaned into from the beginning.

From morning walks through Tokyo to company-wide step challenges, the team embraced not just Japanese customs but its interpersonal rhythms. It wasn’t about adapting the product for Japan. It was about participating in the culture.

One highlight: a spontaneous step challenge that took on a life of its own across Dai-ichi Life. “People were approaching me in the hallway like I was a celebrity,” Stephen laughs. “The engagement was real. People were connecting in a new way.”

Reframing insurance as a daily utility

The YuLife model flips the script on traditional insurance. It doesn’t start with the policy—it starts with the problem. Burnout. Retention. Productivity. These are business issues. Insurance becomes part of the solution.

And it scales. From SMEs to multinationals, the ability to engage employees with everyday wellbeing—and measure the impact—creates a feedback loop most insurers can only dream of.

“We don’t lead with insurance,” says Sam. “We lead with impact. The product comes as part of that.”

From transactional to transformational insurance

As YuLife and Dai-ichi Life look ahead to the next phase of rollout, one thing is clear: this is more than a partnership. It’s a shared commitment to redesigning and transforming what insurance can be.

“We’re not just working with a company,” Stephen says. “We’re building with people. And that changes everything.”